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India to Crack Down on Pre-Installed Apps Under New Smartphone Security Rules
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Why Apple thinks it can come out a winner in dealing with the Indian government is hilarious. Is meeting any of their regulations worth it in the end? I'm sure it's becoming a major headache for them. The Indian government sound like a bunch of near-Luddites, with no comprehension how technology works. They have every right to be concerned, but apps drive iDevices. Making them all able to be deleted makes the devices that much more insecure. It would be like requiring all devices to use ROM memory for software, and not EPROM, or static memory. Upgrades would be nearly impossible...
Yet on the peecee side, the first thing I did when I bought a 'windows' notebook was search and destroy the fluff apps that the manufacturer/OEM included with it, and they have upped their game as some can't be uninstalled.
Yet on the peecee side, the first thing I did when I bought a 'windows' notebook was search and destroy the fluff apps that the manufacturer/OEM included with it, and they have upped their game as some can't be uninstalled.
Users can install Chrome, Firefox, Edge, etc. on iOS and then change the default browser to whichever they installed. However, what they can't do is install the browser engines (Chromium/Blink, Gecko, etc.) as everything is required to use WebKit but that may be changing.
Well, it would be seriously annoying if I had to manually find them in the App Store and download them individually. I’m guessing you’re talking about during the set up process maybe a check mark. That would be OK with me, but I don’t think for OK for most people in India. Unless they had WiFi I couldn’t imagine downloading all the apps on a slow cellular network.
I agree for 99% of apps, but it just doesn’t make sense for things like the App Store, Phone, and Messages.
I guess all of those could be undone with the exception of the App Store. I can just hear the angry complaints now about why they’re “forced” to reset their phone to factory settings because they deleted the App Store and that’s the only way they can get it back to download apps 😂😂
That seems…extreme. Most users don’t want that. Apple already lets you delete more stock apps than Android.
What you describe is basically the browser ballot Microsoft was forced to do in Europe. Apparently that didn’t last long because now on Windows Edge is nagware. Microsoft actively punishes you for using Chrome.
The argument can be made that Android is actually slightly more open, in theory, by letting you use the phone without signing into a Google ID and sideloading, but on the other hand just about all of core Android comes through Play Services these days so the phone will be mostly broken.
You can use the stock apps on an iPhone without an Apple ID. Can’t install anything new except through the App Store.
This is all in ironic contrast to the Mac itself where I can’t delete News but can compile from source and run anything I want that’s not positively identified as malware.
Good.
The Chinese OEMs are the major culprit, with so many junk apps, having even some app downloaders that will auto-download junk apps to your phone, and frequently put misleading notifications to trick people into downloading more junk. These downloaders cannot be uninstalled.
Samsung is not innocent as well, having effing Facebook pre-installed with extra services and installers that are hidden and cannot be uninstalled. And Samsung also have one of those app downloaders, although theirs can be uninstalled unlike the Chinese.
And yeah, of course there's Google. I can uninstall Samsung browser from my Android, but I cannot uninstall Chrome.
The Chinese OEMs are the major culprit, with so many junk apps, having even some app downloaders that will auto-download junk apps to your phone, and frequently put misleading notifications to trick people into downloading more junk. These downloaders cannot be uninstalled.
Samsung is not innocent as well, having effing Facebook pre-installed with extra services and installers that are hidden and cannot be uninstalled. And Samsung also have one of those app downloaders, although theirs can be uninstalled unlike the Chinese.
And yeah, of course there's Google. I can uninstall Samsung browser from my Android, but I cannot uninstall Chrome.
That's just the interpretation of the genius reporters at MR. Where did you read that India's IT ministry is actually targeting these specific apps?
Exactly. Chinese phones are rampant in emerging markets due to their low prices, and they are filled with junk to the brim. If you set up a Xiaomi/other Chinese phones and simply going for defaults without scrutinizing every screen you tap during set up, you will have a home screen filled with useless games, shopping apps, tiktok, etc.
You answered your own question. The vast majority of Apple's apps can be deleted, the rest can be hidden. Versus Samsung, where they're shipping their own versions of almost all of Android's stock apps right alongside, and they cannot be removed to the same degree.
This seems sus to me. I can't find Internet Explorer in the app store. I also can't find Outlook Express. I think Apple is stifling competition.
I thought the reason behind preinstalled apps is that you get enough things to get you started as an iPhone user and enjoy the experience. For more experienced users it's not needed, but it does help people ease into the experience.
Better be careful, you’re not allowed to make that much sense in a single post around here…
Every single one of those apps can be deleted very easily.
It is, however, NOT advisable to delete core apps that work in conjunction with Apple services i.e. phone, messages, FaceTime, camera, photos.
Users have always had the ability to choose their preferred apps without having to actually delete core function apps. Photos is a great example where Google photos works seamlessly with Apple photos.
I think this is a terrible idea and an overreach by the Indian government.
So Apple have a page when you order the phone.
1. Essential apps = Settings,
2. Required apps = Camera, phone, Messages, Mail, Safari etc.
3. Optional apps = Calendar, calculator, Stocks etc etc.
There is a select all option.
Option 1 is for info and cannot be changed.
Options 2 & 3 are up to you.
Given the option, I'd delete half the crap on my phone.
Being tight on security is one thing, but a lot of these kinds of policies from India often sound like they are being made by bureaucrats who have no understanding of tech.
Apple won’t be surprised by this at all. These types of legislation has been in works for years and of course Apple has contractually biding give/take clauses between them and the national government of India already in place.
Pre-installed apps doesn't mean pre-installed features ... so I'm not certain why the iPhone 14 Pro's Dynamic Island is shown here vers any iPhone with 1st party apps listed. By that same token partnership in assembly or manufacturing doesn't exclude national security scrutiny of any nation.
By this alone other than Settings - Apple is already in the clear so nothing for them to worry about.
In India we get 5G (around 2GB every day @ 300Mbps) for around $1 a week. And Wifi Fibre is also cheap around $10 per month for 100MBPS without limits.
Also yes I meant that the setup process will let you choose which essential apps you want to install.